ReutersAlibaba Group Holding Ltd and Swiss group Richemont will invest US$1.1 billion (HK$8.58 billion) in online luxury fashion retailer Farfetch Ltd and its new Chinese marketplace, as online demand for luxury goods booms in the Asian country. Alibaba said on Thursday it will launch Farfetch shopping channels on its e-commerce sites Tmall Luxury Pavilion and Luxury Soho, while also investing in newly formed Farfetch China along with Richemont. Alibaba and Richemont will invest US$300 million each in Farfetch, and US$250 million each for a 25 oercent stake in the joint venture, that will include Farfetch's marketplace operations in China. Farfetch, which counts Alibaba competitors JD.com and Tencent Holdings Ltd among its investors, will be able to expand its reach to Alibaba's 757 million consumers. Separately, Artemis, the controlling shareholder of Gucci-owner Kering, also plans to increase its stake in Farfetch, according to a joint statement.

Source: The Standard November 06, 2020 09:22 UTC